It's been a few months since I've been on the forum but its nice to see so many familiar names in here, and some new ones too. I hope you and your little ones are all doing well.

I am just having a panicking mother moment as one of my mummy friends from school has just called me to tell me her son come out with chicken pox over the weekend. This is stressing me out because a) his little brother is in Leo's class (Leo is our 4 yr old son with a history of fairly bad asthma, including 12 courses of preds and 5 admissions in the last 20 months) and b) Leo is on Seretide and the leaflet says that chicken pox or measles can be serious or even fatal in people on Seretide.

I have been looking up about the chicken pox vaccine as I thought it might be worth paying for that, but it says that in cases of people on long term steroids, they can't take the vaccine as they have a weakened immune system, but that people such as siblings who are in regular close contact can have it to prevent them spreading it to them if you see what I mean?

Argh, I don't know what to do? Should I keep him off school tomorrow and ask our GP?

To top it all my other son, Alfie, 6, has gone to bed with a temperature, snuffles and a huge right tonsil tonight so I hope he isn't coming down with it already.

We are going to Florida in two weeks for half term (our boys get two weeks off for half term), I'm praying this is all panic over nothing and that neither of them catch it!

2 Replies

Sorry to hear that you're having a worrying time. It's a horrid feelin being on tenterhooks. :-((

I can only give you my experience of this..

Both my daughters have asthma. They both caught chicken pox together too!! My eldest was on seretide at the time and my youngest was on Budesonide via a neb. They were both fine with it thankfully. I did call their consultant as soon as it became a possibility though. The consultant ummed and ahhed about giving my younger daughter the vaccine but decided not to.

Maybe you could call the gp or consultant tomorrow. The contagious period was probably before your friends son realised he had pox so unfortunately was prob last wk when you were all blissfully unaware :-(( The problem is that your little chap will be exposed alot to this virus now he's at school so maybe this is the time to discuss with medics how to handle this.

In the meantime sending you massive hugs. I hope you manage to speak to someone tomorrow and all is ok.

My son is on seretide and we have discussed chickenpox with his consultant although he hasn't had chickenpox yet. The advice we were given was to get antivirals as soon as Thomas shows any symptoms to try and limit how severe the chickenpox is. He didn't feel the vaccine was necessary?

To be honest though I am not sure there is that much you can do apart from wait and see as the incubation period for chickenpox means it could be anything up to 21 days before he comes out in spots and he won't definitely have caught it. Thomas has played several times with children during their infectious period and hasn't got it yet he will catch every cold going Although I do feel for you it is a rollercoster of emotions and panic every time the chickenpox sign goes up at Thomas's nursery.

As you are going on holiday soon I would def get at least a phone consultation with your GP.